Wow.
Yesterday was such a great day for me as a teacher. I wish more days could be as great as the last day of school. This is the one day of the year when my defenses are down and students' defenses are down, and we can express our true feelings for each other. There were hugs everywhere!
I am so proud of the class of 2011, and I am so glad to have had the blessing of being able to teach them this year. There have been quite a few last days of school when I honestly couldn't wait for the kids to get on those buses, but not yesterday. I really didn't want those kids to leave!
May their successes in life match their infinite potential!
Have a safe and happy summer.
Love,
Mrs. Hope
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Reading Freak the Mighty
We are currently reading the novel Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick. Students generally love this book. In fact, I've had many 8th graders tell me this is the first book they've ever read all the way through!
I have such a great group of 8th graders this year that I decided to check out books to each student. This meant counting on students to do some reading outside of class instead of reading it aloud, all together, in class. Well, unfortunately, I have bunches of kids who did not do their reading homework! This has created quite a disappointing mess, as I haven't been able to continue with the lessons I had planned.
Today and tomorrow, most classes will have read Chapter 20 aloud. I think we will just start from there, reading the rest of the book aloud.
Please encourage your child to read through Chapter 20!
I have such a great group of 8th graders this year that I decided to check out books to each student. This meant counting on students to do some reading outside of class instead of reading it aloud, all together, in class. Well, unfortunately, I have bunches of kids who did not do their reading homework! This has created quite a disappointing mess, as I haven't been able to continue with the lessons I had planned.
Today and tomorrow, most classes will have read Chapter 20 aloud. I think we will just start from there, reading the rest of the book aloud.
Please encourage your child to read through Chapter 20!
Monday, April 30, 2007
All Outstanding Americans Essays Are IN!!!
No homework for the next few days!
Every student in every class turned in a completed 5-paragraph research essay by Friday's due date (okay -- there were about three who handed it in before school this morning!) and earned a day of celebration. I am so proud of everyone's efforts, and the essays look great. I am especially proud of the excellent job everyone did using an online citation maker to create a Works Cited page. To celebrate our success, we enjoyed snacks and drinks in class today and began watching the movie Radio. We will do a short movie-related assignment on Wednesday before moving on to our novel unit.
On Thursday or Friday we will begin reading Freak the Mighty, a story about a unique friendship between a pair of outcasts. Students will study theme, plot, character development, and setting as we read the novel as a class. Students may have reading homework during this unit, and there will be a unit test at the end. There will also be two vocabulary quizzes -- one for each half of the book. Past students have given Freak the Mighty the thumbs up, so I fully expect this to be an enjoyable reading experience for most kids.
IMPORTANT MESSAGE ABOUT CLASS POETRY BOOK:
Permission slips/order forms went home today. Please sign to allow me to publish your child's poetry, and use the form to order a poetry book if you would like. The book will feature Navigator students' sonnets, friend poems, and photo poems, and costs $2. ALL proceeds will be given to Treats for Troops (benefiting FOHS grads who are currently serving in the military). Forms and money are due Wednesday (May 2).
Every student in every class turned in a completed 5-paragraph research essay by Friday's due date (okay -- there were about three who handed it in before school this morning!) and earned a day of celebration. I am so proud of everyone's efforts, and the essays look great. I am especially proud of the excellent job everyone did using an online citation maker to create a Works Cited page. To celebrate our success, we enjoyed snacks and drinks in class today and began watching the movie Radio. We will do a short movie-related assignment on Wednesday before moving on to our novel unit.
On Thursday or Friday we will begin reading Freak the Mighty, a story about a unique friendship between a pair of outcasts. Students will study theme, plot, character development, and setting as we read the novel as a class. Students may have reading homework during this unit, and there will be a unit test at the end. There will also be two vocabulary quizzes -- one for each half of the book. Past students have given Freak the Mighty the thumbs up, so I fully expect this to be an enjoyable reading experience for most kids.
IMPORTANT MESSAGE ABOUT CLASS POETRY BOOK:
Permission slips/order forms went home today. Please sign to allow me to publish your child's poetry, and use the form to order a poetry book if you would like. The book will feature Navigator students' sonnets, friend poems, and photo poems, and costs $2. ALL proceeds will be given to Treats for Troops (benefiting FOHS grads who are currently serving in the military). Forms and money are due Wednesday (May 2).
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Finishing Up the Research Outline
HOMEWORK: Research Outline Due Wednesday!
We completed our last day of research in the computer lab today. Most students seem to be doing a great job of completing their research outlines and many have already started on the rough draft.
REMEMBER: Each student must use at least three resources for research, and at least two different types of resources (website, book, encyclopedia, magazine article).
HOW PARENTS CAN HELP:
1. Take a look at your child's research outline, particularly the three reasons their Outstanding American is outstanding (in the thesis statement). Many times students are on the right track, but need help with making their main ideas more global.
2. Make sure your child is keeping up with the deadlines on the calendar I sent home. If your child needs to do more research, encourage them to get on the Internet at home, help them plan for time to stay after school (Wednesday or Thursday), or make plans to go to the Mid-Continent Library.
We completed our last day of research in the computer lab today. Most students seem to be doing a great job of completing their research outlines and many have already started on the rough draft.
REMEMBER: Each student must use at least three resources for research, and at least two different types of resources (website, book, encyclopedia, magazine article).
HOW PARENTS CAN HELP:
1. Take a look at your child's research outline, particularly the three reasons their Outstanding American is outstanding (in the thesis statement). Many times students are on the right track, but need help with making their main ideas more global.
2. Make sure your child is keeping up with the deadlines on the calendar I sent home. If your child needs to do more research, encourage them to get on the Internet at home, help them plan for time to stay after school (Wednesday or Thursday), or make plans to go to the Mid-Continent Library.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Project Calendars Went Home Today
No homework tonight!
Students received project calendars today outlining all of the deadlines for the Outstanding Americans project. Here are the BIG deadlines:
Wed., April 18 - Research Outline due (20 points)
Thurs., April 19 - Paragraphs 1 & 2 of rough draft due (10 points)
Fri., April 20 - Paragraphs 3, 4, 5 of rough draft due (10 points)
Thurs., April 26 - Final Copy Due
Students also received scoring guides today, so everyone knows how to get an A.
Classes with 100 percent of student papers turned in by the April 26 deadline will be treated to an in-class celebration on Friday, April 27!
We spent a short time in the computer lab today. We explored the website we will eventually use to create our Works Cited page and searched for magazine articles at EbscoHost.
Students received project calendars today outlining all of the deadlines for the Outstanding Americans project. Here are the BIG deadlines:
Wed., April 18 - Research Outline due (20 points)
Thurs., April 19 - Paragraphs 1 & 2 of rough draft due (10 points)
Fri., April 20 - Paragraphs 3, 4, 5 of rough draft due (10 points)
Thurs., April 26 - Final Copy Due
Students also received scoring guides today, so everyone knows how to get an A.
Classes with 100 percent of student papers turned in by the April 26 deadline will be treated to an in-class celebration on Friday, April 27!
We spent a short time in the computer lab today. We explored the website we will eventually use to create our Works Cited page and searched for magazine articles at EbscoHost.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
A Review of the Five-Paragraph Essay
TONIGHT'S HOMEWORK: Decide which Outstanding American you would like to research for the 5-paragraph essay. Final choices due tomorrow!
Today in class we reviewed the 5-paragraph essay model. Students first learned the model and wrote a 5-paragraph essay back in November, and most students remembered a great deal about the formula for writing this essay. For anyone who might want a refresher, the basic formula is this:
Paragraph 1: Attention Getter, general background info about your topic, thesis statement.
Paragraph 2/Body paragraph 1: Discuss point 1 from the thesis (first reason your person is an Outstanding American in our case).
Paragraph 3/Body paragraph 2: Discuss point 2 from the thesis (second reason person is an Outstanding American).
Paragraph 4/Body paragraph 3: Discuss point 3 from the thesis (third reason person is an Outstanding American).
Paragraph 5: Restate the thesis (but word it differently), summarize main ideas, author may add his/her own commentary about the topic.
I shared the list of approved topics with students today, and I accepted several Topic Proposal forms from those who want to research someone who is not on the approved list. I will get those proposals back to students tomorrow.
Tomorrow we will finalize our topic selections, discuss plagiarism, and learn about the Works Cited page (bibliography) and why it is SO important to keep track of your resources as you conduct research.
Today in class we reviewed the 5-paragraph essay model. Students first learned the model and wrote a 5-paragraph essay back in November, and most students remembered a great deal about the formula for writing this essay. For anyone who might want a refresher, the basic formula is this:
Paragraph 1: Attention Getter, general background info about your topic, thesis statement.
Paragraph 2/Body paragraph 1: Discuss point 1 from the thesis (first reason your person is an Outstanding American in our case).
Paragraph 3/Body paragraph 2: Discuss point 2 from the thesis (second reason person is an Outstanding American).
Paragraph 4/Body paragraph 3: Discuss point 3 from the thesis (third reason person is an Outstanding American).
Paragraph 5: Restate the thesis (but word it differently), summarize main ideas, author may add his/her own commentary about the topic.
I shared the list of approved topics with students today, and I accepted several Topic Proposal forms from those who want to research someone who is not on the approved list. I will get those proposals back to students tomorrow.
Tomorrow we will finalize our topic selections, discuss plagiarism, and learn about the Works Cited page (bibliography) and why it is SO important to keep track of your resources as you conduct research.
Sunday, April 8, 2007
The Research Begins...Ozzy's English???
This week we will begin working on our Oustanding Americans Research Unit. Each student will select an Outstanding American to research and will then write a five-paragraph essay about that person. By the end of this week, I will give students a super-helpful research outline and a calendar outlining all of their deadlines for this three-week unit.
In class on Thursday, we began discussing what is meant by "Outstanding." Students should select an American who has had a positive impact on our world. I tell my students to consider: those who help others or give to charity, those who have overcome obstacles to achieve great things, those who are admired and respected by people of ALL ages, and those who have made the world better or safer.
Inevitably, I have a student each year who asks if it's okay to research Ozzy Osbourne.
"Uh, no. He's not an American, for starters..." I answer, while grinding my teeth into oblivion.
Last week, in fact, I got, "I'm gonna do Austin Powers!"
"Um, well, Austin Powers is A FICTIONAL CHARACTER! And, uh, he's actually PLAYED by a man named Mike Myers, who is CANADIAN!"
"What? Mike Myers is Canadian???"
I do have a lengthy list of pre-approved Outstanding Americans that I will share with students on Tuesday. If students wish to research someone who is NOT on the list, they will need to submit a proposal form to me during class on Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest.
HOW PARENTS CAN HELP:
1. Brainstorm topic ideas with your child.
2. Talk about a bibliography/works cited: Eighth graders have a really difficult time understanding the importance of saving their citation information for use in the bibliography or works cited page. If you have any experience in creating a bibliography or works cited page, talk about it with your child. I will discuss the concept and importance of a bibliography with students at great length before the research begins, and I will show them several examples.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)